The G7 countries are discussing more crypto regulation and ways to help developing nations introduce central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). “As a priority of this year, the G7 will consider how best to help developing countries introduce CBDC consistent with appropriate standards, including the G7 public policy principle for retail CBDC,” said Japan’s Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs.

G7 to Discuss Stronger Crypto Regulation

The G7 countries will discuss tighter cryptocurrency regulation as well as explore ways to assist developing countries in introducing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to ensure consistency with international standards, Reuters reported, citing Japan’s Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, Masato Kanda.

The Group of Seven (G7) consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K., and the U.S. The European Union (EU) also attends G7 meetings. Japan holds the Presidency of the G7 this year.

Kanda explained at a seminar in Washington Tuesday that the crypto and CBDC discussions will be part of the G7 efforts to address challenges the global community is facing from fast-moving digital technology. He stressed that the collapse of crypto exchange FTX last year “was a serious wake-up call” for policymakers to create regulation across borders, elaborating:

For crypto assets, there are a bit of diverging views among countries. But consensus is definitely that we need more regulation, particularly after the FTX shock.

The vice finance minister noted that while the rapid innovation of digital technology has benefits, it has also brought new challenges, including cyber-security, the spread of misinformation, social and political divides, and the risk of destabilizing financial markets.

G7 Seeks to Help Developing Countries With Launching CBDCs

On the topic of central bank digital currencies, the Japanese official shared: “As a priority of this year, the G7 will consider how best to help developing countries introduce CBDC consistent with appropriate standards, including the G7 public policy principle for retail CBDC.” The vice finance minister emphasized:

We have to address risks from the development of CBDC by ensuring factors such as appropriate transparency and sound governance.

Different countries are at different stages of CBDC development. The U.S., for example, has not decided whether to launch a digital dollar. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell recently said that the Fed’s CBDC is in the early stages of experimentation.